At Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, we encounter life-and-death situations every day.

Earlier this summer, Leah Mickschl, a Children’s RN, experienced a crisis outside our walls. She was at a private neighborhood pool in Lakeville when a 4-year-old boy was discovered at the bottom of the pool.

She was in the right place at the right time.

Mickschl, who works at Midwest Children’s Resource Center, called upon her training and performed CPR on the boy. He had been under water for approximately two minutes, she said. But within seconds of having CPR performed on him, he sputtered water and regained consciousness. The boy recovered, and today, he’s active and healthy.

In July, the Lakeville City Council honored Mickschl for her life-saving efforts. She appreciates the honor and wants to use it as an opportunity to remind people of aquatic safety.

On the day of the boy’s near-drowning, the pool was filled with people – children and adults, she said. No one saw him go under; Mickschl’s own children were only a few feet away.

“Drowning is silent. It’s not like in the movies where you’re thrashing about and calling for help,” Mickschl said.

Unfortunately, drowning is the leading cause of accidental death among children ages 1 to 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death behind motor vehicle crashes among children 1 to 14.

Mickschl encourages people to check out these water-safety tips from Children’s Dr. Manu Madhok before they head to the pool or lake. She also suggests getting CPR-certified.

“Prevention should always be the goal, but you never know when those skills might be needed,” she said.

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